How much do brands spend on Marketing and Martech
Picked a few select brands that launched post 2000 to look at how much they spend on marketing and in turn martech and measurement
Having a look at brands launched post 2000, picked a range of brands in different categories with varying scales of revenue. Looked at how much those brands had spent on marketing in the financial year (US focused) which was fascinating with all at different stages of maturity pic.twitter.com/1SfxoztZ0K
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) March 11, 2024
Conversation with an E-Commerce brand about measurement
Had a chat with an E-commerce brand in how to navigate their measurement challenges
Speaking to an E-commerce Brand it came up in conversation that start of 2024…
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) April 10, 2024
Share of Search is your brand health indicator
Share of search was used to show how an over investment into performance was killing interest in the brand
Share of search is your indicator to business health and performance https://t.co/hHbYxPPWzl
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) January 9, 2025
My step count for 3 years of solo consultancy
Breakdown of my 8.1m steps in 3 years of solo consultancy
Yesterday I shared a post about 3 years of solo consultancy and mentioned briefly the steps I have done in that period. Thought it deserved it's own post. I am being totally geeky
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) June 5, 2025
Summary of my 3 years of solo consultancy
Looking back at 3 years of solo consultancy
I have reached 3 years as a solo consultant which is a milestone. I did try to write an article on my 3rd year like I have done for the past 2 years which was unsuccessful I ended up starring at a screen for 90 mins
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) June 4, 2025
2024 LinkedIn UnWrapped
My 2024 LinkedIn journey
So decided to do the LinkedIn unwrapped, I thought may as well do it
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) December 31, 2024
Jewellery E-commerce Start-Up
6 year journey for a Jewellery E-Commerce Start-Up
With the rising cost of media and for a start-up (getting to scale up) being so dependant on Google and Meta is equivalent of going on life support as they are the main driver of sales so any thought of reducing budgets the consequences are too significant https://t.co/mTqPhLlqFb
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) November 5, 2024
Planning data and tech ecosystems
The different approaches for large and small business in planning there data and tech ecosystems
Last couple of months been working on two very similar projects at very different scales with the focus on planning the data and tech ecosystem
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) April 9, 2025
Does the strategy drive the data or does data drive the strategy
Worked with an SME to help them better understand there data and tech but they were left with more questions than answers
Worked on a project and the goal was to help them in their maturity of data and tech. To help me better understand the business it involved data and tech audit + stakeholder interviews. This whole process is a great way to better understand the business
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) July 1, 2025
Apple Ecosystem
I am now fully sold into the Apple Ecosystem
I am now fully part of the Apple Ecosystem having purchased MacBook Air (very slick) which adds to my iPhone, iPad, Air Pods and Watch, also signed up to Cloud (moving away from Dropbox). First time in 15 years since I have fallen into the segment of having the core Apple devices
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) January 18, 2024
CDP Planning
The success of a CDP comes down to the planning
When planning for the CDP one of the areas that got more interest was suggested that the CDP to go live 12 months after a new CRM is launched. The view was that it can be plug and play https://t.co/vzwxo5pane
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) September 2, 2024
The impact of no paid media
For a Jewellery E-commerce the impact of running no paid media for 6 weeks was a positive
January 2025 was the first month for E-com Jewellery having no paid media live since summer 2021, 42 months constant of running paid media. The reason for no paid media the budget from Jan-25 was pushed forward into Dec-24 to meet with the demand pic.twitter.com/XVr2GMzDBn
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) March 19, 2025
Stats for my 125 Dishoom visits
Breakdown of my 125 Dishoom visits
I am being totally geeky, I would say it is interesting data I have now reached 125 @Dishoom visits, 2 years since I made my 100th visit.
Some stats from the 125 visits: pic.twitter.com/Ol6ZkTYEf2
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) June 10, 2025
My Step Count from 2021 to 2024
From 2021 to 2024 I have walked 11m steps
I am all in with Apple which includes the Apple Watch since summer 2020 and my biggest frustration with the Health app is its love for averages, not sure if they know but averages lie
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) January 2, 2025
Dishoom & Data Chat
Business cards are a winner. All about mental and physical availability > https://x.com/mrdipeshashah/status/1854951471621537809
This may or may not lead into anything it could end up as a good data chat over some good food @Dishoom which is always a win. I do think business cards are a win. All about mental and physical availability
FYI Two Boots pizza is amazing pic.twitter.com/MmMJWpP5UB
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) October 30, 2024
Dishoom 100 not out
For those who know I am a big Dishoom fan and have tracked my visits using the Swarm app
Finally reached the landmark of 100 visits to @Dishoom over a 10 year period visiting 9 of the restaurants. It still lives upto the hype and tickles my belly. The service is impeccable, the experience is imperial, and the menu is out of this worldhttps://t.co/528RzaVbPT
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) June 12, 2023
The cinema experience
Still believe Netflix acquiring a cinema would be a great business deal
I am a big fan of the cinema experience but it does feel streaming platforms has poured cold water on the cinema
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) April 21, 2025
Purchase behaviour
Compared BFCM to a Friday to Monday and the purchase behaviours
Last week I shared for an e-com over BFCM how consumers were buying. I looked back at the year and picked a normal Friday to Monday in March where there was no offers, spikes in traffic etc, it delivered what was forecasted https://t.co/aPbVSsHxk9 pic.twitter.com/pvV4k34bgE
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) December 9, 2024
Understanding retention for discounted members
80% of customers who used a promo code only purchased once
It’s all about first order profitability https://t.co/bs4wMSpu7g
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) October 31, 2024
Data project from meeting at Two Boots Pizza in New York
Worked on a project in auditing an e-com data and tech ecosystem >
https://x.com/mrdipeshashah/status/1904935964239134913
Kicking off a data project which took 7 months to start from 1st touch point to sign off.
1st touch: Bumped into client at Two Boots Pizza in New York West Village (June 2024)
2nd touch: Shared my business card
3rd touch: Client visited my blog and dropped me a WhatssApp message https://t.co/9SxH5xxSvq— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) January 21, 2025
BFCM Strategy
How to be not so reliant on BFCM
Talking to a retailer it came up in conversation about BFCM it was mentioned that it’s suicidal for brands but market dictates. Something they have planned for 18 months is not invest as heavily into BFCM this year
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) September 9, 2024
My DVD Collection on Big Query
Organised my DVD Collection on Big Query which is available to query
I have organised my 750+ DVD Collection which I have now had for 26 years into Big Queryhttps://t.co/HP0lxtTskG
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) March 2, 2025
Having the right analytics infrastructure
Having a staging environment that is separate from the development environment ensures a high level of quality data
Having worked on many analytics projects I do find it bonkers there is no staging environment that is split from the production environment. Or even when there is a staging environment it’s only temporary pic.twitter.com/3hTeZcvZmH
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) May 20, 2025
New Business
The 6 month journey to kick of one of the most exciting data projects I have worked on
So kicking off an exciting data project which took 6 months to complete the journey made it interesting:
1st touch: Bumped into client at @thehoxton
2nd touch: Shared my business card
3rd touch: Client visited my blog
4th touch: Zoom chat
5th touch:@Dishoom lunch (99th visit)— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) September 27, 2023
This clips hits in many ways but from a professional angle I am completing a project which came randomly chat with someone at Hoxton Hotel, 6 months later the project started, 5 months later putting the final touches on one of my most satisfying projects I have worked on pic.twitter.com/Boo8qi2Tlk
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) February 27, 2024
The Growth of the IPL
The growth of the IPL now in it’s 17th season is at a scale now every brand would want to be part of the IPL
With the IPL 17th season kicking of tomorrow what the IPL has done not only to cricket has been transformative, it also positively correlates to in the same period with India becoming the global powerhouse that it’s todayhttps://t.co/MeA4TH5iNG
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) March 21, 2024
Streaming War Fight
The streaming war fight is only going one way
I do wonder with the streaming war fight which is ultimately about watch time / engagement = more ad-revenue. There’s going to be far less films / sequels produced an avg film is 90 mins where a series will have greater watch time which aligns with the business model
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) February 21, 2024
Thank You Email for Big Query code
9th January 2024 I received a lovely email how big query code had become a goldmine
Received this lovely email in the morning. All credit hire to the data don, data whizz @oh_jeffrey8 I bumped into him 18 months ago on a project and it’s an absolute pleasure. We both agree that sharing is caring and it’s nice to get emails like this, it’s a nice pat on the back pic.twitter.com/0WSKDX0Ez9
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) January 9, 2024
Campaign Photoshoot
Insights from my first campaign photoshoot
I got an email early December from a creative agency from seeing my instagram if I could jump into to be a photographer on a campaign photoshoot pic.twitter.com/CgL7PsFEpZ
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) January 21, 2024
I was too expensive
For a business who outsource majority of there business to India i was deemed to expensive even when i was sold in as 2 days per week
So worked with a brand which sold in as 2 days per week for min 6 months but when I submitted my invoice they shat in the bed as the head of finance did not realise my cost. 90% they outsource to India in other words my day date is probably = 1 month pay in India pic.twitter.com/9NRS6qe5Sj
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) March 27, 2025
Developing a data & technology ecosystem
I was working on developing a data & technology stack for an E-commerce retailer. With all the changes in the world business needs to develop their own ecosystem that matches their business needs and requirements. As great as GAFA is and they will still play a big role but there is a bigger drive now to own data, better understand the customer and this requires breaking away from the ecosystem that you currently have.
Been working on a very interesting project for an e-com retailer to build out their data & tech ecosystem. We easily fall into the trap of the Google world but there are so many good data & tech partners out there to help drive business forward
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) December 3, 2020
Liverpool FC Digital Strategy
Being a Liverpool fan i am probably a bit biased but how the club has been transformed on and off the pitch has been remarkable supported by a digital & content strategy which has been phenomenal
As an @LFC fan got to admire the job that’s been done as a brand to Liverpool FC more so as a marketer myself. The club have been transformed 360 degrees on and off the pitch by @John_W_Henry, @PeterMooreLFC they get what Liverpool means. This means morehttps://t.co/XdhUmvUuFD
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) August 24, 2020
Thank You Email for Resources
4nd January 2023 I received a lovely email how my resources have come into use
Received this lovely email early morning today. As much as I have enjoyed writing and sharing resources which has become a passion of mine now. I do believe in sharing is caring and emails like this it’s a nice pat on the back pic.twitter.com/PnORdndT95
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) January 4, 2023
Questions brands need to consider when looking at Econometric Modelling
3 key questions that brands need to think about before committing to Econometric modelling
3 key questions brands should consider that are looking at Econometric Modelling as a driver for growth:
1) How to factor in more variables into the model
2) Ensure that the models are accurate
3) Is it worth the investment— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) September 3, 2021
Driving growth by being smart
Driving growth without paid media is possible in the yearly years of a start-up just need to be smart
Some good lessons to take away that drives success:
• Clear primary KPI
• Commitment to developing product was relentless
• Customer Journey is critical
• Qual insights is your best friend
• Organic is a winner
• Being smart with limited paid media budget is important https://t.co/efsUn4t54J— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) July 20, 2022
The key differences between MMM v MTA
MMM is the future of measurement but MTA still comes up in conversation so I have shared the key differences between the two
The key differences between MMM v Attribution. Best way to understand it MMM is a top down approach where Attribution is a bottom up approach. I do see the value Attribution provided but it never really lived up-to expectations. I believe good forecasting replaces Attribution pic.twitter.com/2kQcmaqM24
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) September 1, 2021
Building the right architecture for your martech stack
Working with a retail focused brand where digital and e-commerce became bigger pie of the business model in 2020 had to re-build their martech stack. The context is the brand did not own the .com domain so the architecture had to be built around country domains
Building the right architecture for your martech stack is becoming a bigger conversation in driving success. Working with a brand that was primarily retail focused, digital and e-commerce became a bigger part of the business model in 2019 that got accelerated in 2020
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) November 8, 2022
MMM WhatsApp Chit Chat
Bit of a chit chat with a client about MMM
Client asked me to join a call last minute with the agency to talk about MMM and we had bit of a chit chat during the presentation. A lot of times measurement is too rushed without real strategic foresight. Also measurement can help prove a certain POV pic.twitter.com/C5b7Agu6ME
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) November 7, 2022
Match Rate report
Match rate report looking at revenue reported in Google Analytics v sales tool. With the match-rate limit at 90% Google Analytics data has to be no less then 10% discrepancy
I believe match rate dashboard is probably one of the most powerful an e-commerce business can have to hand pic.twitter.com/vXFvrVfna8
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) October 17, 2023
Google Analytics 4 for E-commerce Business
With the launch of Google Analytics 4 I have shared 5 key areas how E-commerce business can benefit from the new changes
Talking to an e-commerce marketer about Google Analytics 4 and as a business they are fully committed to the Google (free) stack. I do see some good things around GA4, this is what I shared in how they can benefit from it. 5 key areas to help:
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) November 5, 2020
DVD Collection
Learning more around Google Cloud and Big Query decided to organise my DVD Collection and uploaded the dataset which is now publicly live to query
Learning more around @googlecloud particularly Big Query thought it will be a good idea to organise my #DVDCollection which I have had for 23 years. I have been using @mymovies_info as an app which I think is bloody great pic.twitter.com/0bMlCCWx4z
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) February 8, 2022
Better way understand Attribution
Got bit bored of using the football analogy when talking about attribution so looked so looked at a model in how it works in the dating world / looking for a life partner
When talking about attribution the concept was based around football between the goal scorer n assist. Which is no difference to the dating world which has massively changed with a combination of offline n online touch-points making the journey becoming more complex n fragmented pic.twitter.com/SfGCJxJJRc
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) January 7, 2021
Mini Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager case study
A mini thread on evolving an e-commerce business analytics
Working on e-commerce multi market business Analytics and GTM last year when initially auditing their account it was a car crash. Not one person internally was getting any insight out of it, there were duplicate tags firing and no form of governance or data management deployed https://t.co/fwk7tOQKgQ
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) August 11, 2021
My marketing data and tech ecosystem article is top of the Google searches
My article is ahead of McKinsey and Marketing Tech News
My marketing data & tech ecosystem article that I shared nearly a year ago is top of Google searches and even more impressively it's above McKinsey and Marketing Tech News. Quite happy with that pic.twitter.com/SUWxoBqJRb
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) December 21, 2021
Thank You Email for Datalayer Framework
Sunday 2nd January 2022 I received a lovely email how my datalayer framework helped
Received this lovely email on Sunday, how my Datalayer framework came into practical use to get approval all the way to implementation. Pleased to see that’s it’s come into use, it’s all I really wanted pic.twitter.com/2cIBH0U6h1
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) January 4, 2022
Being the geek I am also looked at some numbers to see the impact of my organic social post. The impact was huge
So Organic Social does work. This post had much bigger impact then I expected. Some numbers to share for the last week: (yes comparing to previous week is not ideal)
– 1,850%+ views on my linkedin
– 583%+ traffic to my website
– 100%+ resources downloaded from my website https://t.co/50P07WC95O— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) January 9, 2022
Facebook Landing Views v Google Analytics Sessions
I have been intrigued how Facebook and Google data model work so I thought let me compare FB landings v GA sessions which should be a fair comparison
I have reported the insights in the twitter thread below and on a linkedin post as well
Over a 31-week period I have been monitoring the difference between Facebook Landing Views v Google Analytics Sessions.
To ensure a good base when comparing:
-Both GA & FB deployed via GTM
-FB campaigns are all click based
-FB campaigns have a good UTM set-up— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) November 18, 2020
CDP RFI / RFP Framework
When looking for a CDP vendor there are 3 main areas that needs to be the focal point: Data Management, Audience Management and Analytics & Reporting
Customer Data Platforms are going to play a big role for brands in 2021 and onwards. Understanding what the business requirements are for a CDP and how it fits into the wider ecosystem is critical before you go shopping for the right vendor to come on this journey
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) January 11, 2021
Thank You Email for GTM Containers
End of 2020 I received a lovely email how my GTM Containers have helped
Received this lovely email end of last week on my GTM Containers that I have made available. Great to see that it’s coming into use, it’s all I really wanted pic.twitter.com/amyIKFyXhC
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) January 4, 2021
The numbers looking for a job in a pandemic
Thought it would be interesting to look at the funnel for my job applications in 2021 while the world was upside down
Having found a job and looking back I thought it would be worth using my marketing skills and understand the funnel looking for a job during a pandemic. Biggest drop-off is from applications to email replies which is 76% then beyond that not sure what is good or bad pic.twitter.com/Fu9Av7VJDm
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) May 14, 2021
Understanding the new cricket format Hundred through a marketing lens
Trying to make sense of the hundred through a marketing lens
Taking my learings from the Mark Ritson MBA I am trying to make sense of understanding why The Hundred (in the UK) was formed not from a cricketing view but from a marketing view. There has been lots of confusing messages about The Hundred
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) October 14, 2020
Google Analytics hard-coded v implementation via GTM
Working with a client who had hard-coded implementation of marketing tags and Google Analytics was their primary source of truth. When implemented GA via GTM there were differences v hard-coded GA of 30% in revenue numbers reported.
Been working on GTM and GA implementation. Client had old GA hard-coded as it had been a legacy so agreed to keep it hard coded then remove it. Challenge was Old GA consistently reported close to 30% more revenue over a week #GoogleAnalytics #Measure #Analytics #GoogleTagManager pic.twitter.com/W2MhJsFJva
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) September 23, 2018
Google Tag Manager Page load testing
I have been lucky enough to work with a small to medium sized e-commerce business in it’s early days. where we did some testing around page load times. 6 tests over 6 different weeks.
I have been lucky enough to work with a small to medium sized e-commerce business in it's early days. Got a smart developer and saavy digital person allowing me to do some testing around page load times which is planned over the next 6 weeks with each week a separate test
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) May 6, 2020
How Starbucks could plug the gap and create a we-work model
Starbucks could capitalise on a gap in market with the new ways of working
With the ways of working having changed for ever, big office spaces not needed and we-work model crashing. I do wonder if there is a gap in the market for the likes of Starbucks to capitalise on. https://t.co/CknMIdQa4s
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) November 19, 2020
Ramblings from my redundancy
392 days of redundancy I shared my journey
Made redundant. 13/05/2020 – Day 1 of being jobless. No idea what’s going to happen next, take it in my stride. Good time to upskill and I will be happy with contract work for next 6 months or so. What is for sure it’s going to be messy world so good time to get out
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) May 13, 2020
My A in the Mini MBA in Marketing
I got my first ever A in any form of education
A cracking end to 2020. Loved doing the @MWMiniMBA the best 4 months of the year. It’s been real left v right brain has allowed me to see things very differently. Learnt loads. Exam took me back years but the stress was worth it. @markritson you are an absolute legend. Thank You pic.twitter.com/aUnzhUHc6k
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) December 18, 2020
Server Side Google Tag Manager testing
I had a test of getting server side GTM live for http://gtmrecipecontainers.com/ and I have shared the process below in a thread
Couple of weeks ago I had a play with getting server side GTM live for https://t.co/Ch0RwaGoDj and thought it would be worth sharing a snapshot view of the process
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) December 22, 2020
Google Tag Manager Containers
Having worked on a good number of audits and migrations around Google Tag Manager i was shocked to see the state of them so i decided to build out GTM containers around multi platforms that can be used by anyone.
http://gtmrecipecontainers.com/
From getting annoyed seeing how #GoogleTagManager was setup from audits I decided to create a GTM Container templates for multi platform tracking to create best practices and consistency https://t.co/0PPIVn1JfI#EcomChat #adtech #measure #Analytics #marketing #media #martech pic.twitter.com/v0o77iWBKv
— Dipesh Shah (@mrdipeshashah) August 20, 2019